Collapsible tube.



PATENTED OUT. 9, 1906.

R. BROOKS. COLLAPSIBLE TUBE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 18, 1904.

naw/Mm Men Brae/ks 3513M qflomm wi/tmcww UNITED STATES PATENT orrion.

REUBEN BROOKS, OF GLOUCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO RUS IA CEMENTCOMPANY, OF GLOUCESTER. MASSACHUSETTS, A COR ORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

QOLLAPSlBL-IE TCBED Specification of Letters Patent.

Appli ation fil d March 18, 1904. Serial in. 198,772.

Patented Oct. 9, 1906.

' Gloucester, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in' Collapsible Tubes, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to collapsible tubes for holding viscous oradhesive substances such as glue, paint, &c. and the main object of theinvention is to provide a tube of this class which is completely. sealedwhen placed on the market, but has at its discharge end a thin portionor wall which may be punctured by a pin, needle, or similar smallarticle, but which is so protected by a large mass of materialconstituting the nozzle of the tube that it cannot be reached andenlarged by a puncturing instrument of relatively large size such, forexample, as a knife-blade or similar article. a

in a prion patent granted to me June 4', 1901, Serial No. 675,372, thereis disclosed a collapsible tube having a thin puncturable wall similarto that just described; butin said patent this wall. is not protectedfrom puncture by a knife-blade or similar large article' capableofmaking a large hole in such thin opening. It has been found inpractice that when collapsible tubes of the type shown in said patentare put on the market the purchasers do not always break the seal formedby this thin puncturable wall in the manner intended-that is, bymaking apin-like puncture or perforation therethroughbut often make an openingmuch larger than is intended, either by greatly increasing the size ofthe hole that a pin will normally make or by using a larger puncturinginstrument which at the moment of puncturing will form an opening oflarge area. ing formed in the puncturable wall of such a tube is ofsmall area or diameter-that is to say, is a pin-likeperforation-thecontents of the tube will flow through the opening even when no pressureis applied to the walls of the tube. If, however, the puncture islimited to the small diameter or area desired, the contents will notilow out unless such pressure is applied to the collapsible walls. Whenmy improved tube embodies the self-sealing featureldisclosed in my priorpatentthat is to Unless the opensay, when it is provided with a cup orcavity at the outside of the puncturable wall, in which cavity a smallquantity of the contents may be permitted to dry after the first use ofthe contentsthe opening formed in the puncturable wall will be sealed bythe drying of the small quantity permitted to escape into such cavity.011 each subsequent use of the contents of the tube the new seal formedby such dried portion of the contents is'broken; but in my prior patenteach breaking of the seal after the original puncturing of the metaltends to enlarge the opening, waste the contents of the tube, and renderit increasingly diificult to effectually seal the enlarged opening.- Inmy present invention, however, the metal adjacent to the. puncturablewall is so thick that even the most careless user will be unable toinsert any puncturing instrument larger than a pin, needle, or similararticle, and hence will be unable to make a large initial opening.Moreover, the resistance opposed bythese thick walls to a pin, needle,or like article is so great as topreclude the enlargement of the holefirst madein such wall.

In the drawings accompanying this specification and forming part of thepresent application, Figure l is a sectional side elevationof animproved collapsible tube having a self-sealing discharge-nozzleconstructed in accordance with my present invention. Fig.

2 is a planet the same. Fig. 3 is a view simi lar to Fig. 1 of amodification of the invention, illustrating a removable nozzle. 4 is aplan of the same. Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 3 of a tube having awide distributing-opening in its nozzle for applying a wide band ofglue, paint, &c;, to a surface. Fig. 6 is a plan of the same. Fig. 7 isa view similar to Fig. 1 of a modification of the in vention,illustrating a nozzle for applying a narrow thread-like line of glue,paint, the, to a surface. Fig. 8 is a plan of the same.

Similar characters designate like parts in all the figures of thedrawings.

In carrying my invention into effect it may be applied either tocollapsible tubes having one of the features illustrated in my aforesaidpatent-viz, a discharge-nozzle integral with the body of the tube-or itmay be embodied in a modified form of the old type of collapsible tubes,in which the sealing cap Fig.

to tubes as ordinarily made.

body or barrel of which is designated by A- construction At its lowerend the tube is or may be closed inthe' usual manner by folding over theflattened edges of the tube to form a seam. The whole body and issubstantially similar in i of thistube, including the folded end and theneck with its nozzle, is made from a single piece of material, usuallymetal, the various parts being so shaped and formed by dies as to leavea relatively large, strong, and-unyielding massof material at the nozzleand merging into the thin, weak, and easily-collapsible walls of thebodyA.. This large mass of material is designated by B and has an openingtherein of considerable length, forming an aperture which does notextend entirely through the same, but which extends almost through it,leaving only a thin wall, such as E, to seal the tube. This thin wall iseasily punctured by a pin, needle, or like article passed through anaperture in alinement with the wall, and such an aperture is shown at D.This aperture is of relatively small diameter or area and ofconsiderable length as compared with its diameter, its area being justsuflicient to admit such a small article as a'pin and its'len'gth being.

such as to hold the pin and guide the same positively and preventenlargement of the openin in the thin wall E.

' It wi 1 be noticed that there is a large body of metal all around theaperture D, through which the puncturing-pin or other article is passed,and the strength of this solid mass of 'metal and the resistance offeredby it are suflicient to'prevent the enlargement of the aperture in thewall E by working the pin around in the aperture D.

In the preferred construction the aperture through which the puncturinginstrument is passed is in communication with the exterior of the tubethrough a cup or cavity of sufiicient size to permit a small portion ofthe contents of the tube to dry .out over the outer" end ofsuch'aperture and seal the same, thus making the tube self-sealing, asin my afore-g said patent. In the resent case, however, this automaticresea ing of the tube after each use of the same is assured, because themassof metal around the aperture prevents the same from bein enlarged bysuccessive punctures of the sea and hence the aperture will alwaysremain small enough to be sealed by the contents .until the tube isempty. At C, I have shown such a cup or cavity in which a smallportionof the contents of the tube may dry to reseal the tube, as in myprior patent aforesaid. In Figs. 3 and 4 I have illustrated amodification in which the body A of a collapsible 'tube is formed with athreaded neck in the well-known manner; and a removable cap or nozzle isthreaded ontosuch neck to seal the tube. This nozzle as to its largemass of material B for protecting the puncturable wall E thereof fromenlargement and as to the other principal features there0fviz., the ap--erture D and the sealing cup or cavity Cis similar in construction tothe corresponding features of the integral nozzle shown in Figs. 1 and2.

In Figs. 5 and6 I have illustrated another modification of theinvention, in which a tube-body A, similar to that just described withreference to Figs. 3 and 4, also has a removable cap or nozzle; but inthiscap the discharge opening or nozzle outlet which communicates withthe aperture D is 'a relatively ion and narrow outlet, preferably formedby a aring sealing cup or cavity G, the outer edges or lips of which aresufficiently close together to permit the rapid and uniform distributionof the contents of the tube in a broad band on any smooth surface overwhich this spreading-nozzle may bedrawn. These lips are designated by L,the mass of metal which surrounds the aperture D" is designated by B",and the puncturingwall by E.

In Figs. 7 and 8 I have illustrated amodification of the tube similar tothat shown in Figs. 1 and 2, except'that the body Ahas a"discharge-nozzle which tapers practically to a point and is conical. Inthis nozzle the puncturable Wall E" has in alinement therewith anaperture D somewhat longerthan the aperture shown in the other views,this aperture being surrounded b a sufficient mass of metal B to preventthe insertion of any large-instrument therein. In this tube theincreased length of the aperture is for the purpose of assuring thedrying of a sufiicient quantity of the contents to seal the tube afterit has been once used, there being no separate sealing cup or cavity, asin the other views. With this ty e of discharge-nozzle a very thinthread-1i e line of glue or other substance may be laid on a surface, asis desirable in doing some kinds of ornamental work.

In all of the various forms of collapsible tubes shown in this case itwill be seen that the tube is entirely sealed by the walls of the tubeitself until the tube reaches the hands of the consumer,- and this isimportant, as it often happens .that a long time elapses after the tubeis sent out from the factory before it reaches the consumer, and it isessential that the tube shall be perfectly sealed until nozzle is ofsufiicient size to permit the resealing or self-sealing action of thecontents, and the outer ed es or lips of the opening at the dischargeemf of the nozzle are so shaped as to permit the contents to be appliedin a broad band or otherwise to a surface, thus adding to the practicalvalue of the nozzle as a means for distributing the contents of thetube. -When used as a spreading-nozzle, the

- narrow slit formed by the walls of the flaring opening permits thecontents of the tube to beforced out in a broad thin sheet, as wide asthe discharge-outlet is lon when the Walls of the tube are squeezed anthe nozzle drawn along a suitable surface, the thickness of the coatingap lied in this manner being determined by t e pressure exerted on thewalls of the tube and by the. position in which the nozzle is held.

What I claim is v1. A collapsible tube having at its discharge end athin readily-punctu'rable wallv and an elongated aperture of small andsubstantially uniform diameter in alinement with said puncturable wall,the said a erture being surrounded by rigid noncol apsible 2. Acollapsible tube having at its discharge enda thin readily-puncturablewall and an elongated aperture of small and substantially uniformdiameter inalinement with said puncturable wall, the said a erture beingsurrounded by. rigid non-col apsible walls and terminating at its outerend in an enlarged cup-like cavity. 7

3. A collapsible tube having at its dis charge end a removable cap,which cap is formed at its inner part with a thin, readilypuncturablewall, and at the outer side of said thin wall with a narrow elongatedaperture of uniform width for guiding a puncturing-tool, 'said narrowaperture being surrounded with a relatively thick mass of material inwhich is .formed an enlarged cup-like outlet, whereby thepuncturing-tool is guided, the area of the puncture limited and the tubemade self-sealing bya portion of its contents in said cup-like outlet,substan .tially as set forth.

Signedat Gloucester, in the county of Essexand State of Massachusetts,this 10th day of March, A. D. 1904.

REUBEN BRooKs.

'Witnesses:

I Josnrn F MAGPHEE,

WILLARD 0. 1 001.12.

